Duomo in Milano
Acropolis at sunset in Athens
Santorini is as stunning and picture-perfect as any postcard or travel guide you've ever seen depicts it: chalk-white buildings as far as you can see, are set into the rustic, hilly landscape and peer down onto glistening, cobalt water. The island of Santorini is the remains of a giant volcano that erupted thousands of years ago, leaving a massive ring of volcanic rock surrounding a smaller caldera in the middle where the lava poured out. The views are magnificant from every point on the island.
We stayed at Villa Irini and loved our little apartment. To get to Villa Irini we hopped on the local bus from the ferry station, and requested the "Mexican Restaurant" stop. That's the actual name of the stop as it's known by all on the island. We met the owner of the restaurant, a woman from Colorado who 20-some years ago moved to Santorini and opened the only (not surprisingly) Mexican restaurant on the island. Nestled into one of the many little white dwellings along the coast, Villa Irini was perfect for our two-night stay in Santorini. We had a large room with small kitchen, private balcony with a view and shared pool. Villa Irini is about a 20 minute walk south of Fira, the capital, and so we saved a bit on the price and it provided great privacy and calm away from the bustle of Fira.
Once we'd breathed a few sighs of "I can't believe we get to stay in this paradise", we turned our attention to finding The Alters, our friends Josh and Claire who had arrived a couple days earlier for the start of their 10-week vacation through Greece, Turkey, Israel, Jordan and the Netherlands. We were stoked to see some familiar faces and spend some time with close friends.
A highlight in Santorini was a very memorable (and quite possibly one of the best!) meals of our trip at Katina's Fish Taverna in Ammoudi, with Josh and Claire. Ammoudi is a magical little fishing village, with about six restaurants right on the water, on the northwest side of the island, just below Oia. Katina's place is a legend in Santorini and is famous for its fresh fish (locals in town confirmed that Katina sources and serves the freshest fish...she has her own fishermen that reel it in daily). The restaurant is simple: tables, chairs, fish, and an outdoor grill. No fancy decor, music, or gussied up servers to distract from the main event: FISH. Our middle-aged, burly, mild-mannered server walked us over to the fresh fish displayed on ice in the kitchen to view the day's catch and decide what we wanted on our plates.
Katina's Fish Taverna on the left
We chose a few small red mullets, and our server encouraged us to choose a large cod and one good-sized piece of octopus. The man with the hardest job in the place stood all night at his post at the outdoor grill. One whole fish after another was set onto the wood-fired grill under his watchful eye, and then he sent it through a window to the kitchen to be plated, garnished and sent out to salivating patrons.
Our meal was accompanied with some house made fava dip (local specialty), eggplant salad (a delicious smoked dip), tsatsiki and fresh bread. The red mullet was crispy, salty and delicious, the cod tender and with just the right subtle grill flavour, the dips unique and tasty, and the company...the best! And of course the setting was unforgettable. We sat right next to the sea that lapped into the shore and reflected the night lights of Ammoudi.
We spent the the entire next day at our pool soaking in the view, and then caught the evening ferry with the Alters to Heraklion, Crete.
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